


Skinny Love

by Stuckyl0v3r



Category: Call Me By Your Name (2017) RPF
Genre: Boys In Love, Boys Kissing, Crushes, Cute boys, F/M, Falling In Love, First Kiss, First Time, Fluff and Humor, Fluff and Smut, Friendship/Love, Light Angst, M/M, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-19
Updated: 2020-04-04
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:20:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 19,884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23216173
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stuckyl0v3r/pseuds/Stuckyl0v3r
Summary: Armie Hammer had a crush on Timothée Chalamet since he's first seen the boy. A project and Nick, the best wingman on the planet, bring them together. This is the journey of how two high-schoolers with totally different backgrounds fell in love and stayed that way.
Relationships: Timothée Chalamet/Armie Hammer
Comments: 96
Kudos: 112





	1. one.

**Author's Note:**

> So I'd like to thank to everyone writing works of fiction on here about Armie and Timmy because it inspired me to do so as well. Hope you'll enjoy it. Initially I wanted this to be a longer one-shot, but screw it, I'm making it multi-chapter. Please leave your thoughts on the comment section.
> 
> All the love. :)

He was too damn skinny.

All pointy elbows and prominent collarbones, peaking from under that God-awful colorful sweater that he was wearing, definitely too big for his body. And he was short, but maybe it seemed so because he, at 6'5, was towering over most of his classmates. Today he was at the bleachers, shoulders hunched over a notebook while he was half listening to whatever the blonde girl was saying to him. He's seen them around, always together, sometimes accompanied by another guy and he wondered if the two of them were together. They never walked hand in hand, and he's never seen them kiss, but he still wondered... 

”Oi, Armie!” someone yelled out his name and he forced himself to tear his gaze from the little guy's face so he could look at his friend.

”What?”

”You coming or what?” Nick asked him, following with his eyes the direction in which Armie was looking. Upon noticing the cute boy at the bleachers he smirked, slamming his palm between Armie's shoulder blades. ”Are you stalking the cute nerd again?” 

Armie punched him in the arm, choosing to keep his mouth shut from any comments. Nick would only tease him for the rest of the day. His friend meant well, obviously. He knew all about Armie's infatuation with the boy and he wholeheartedly approved. The truth was that Armie was crushing on a boy he's never spoken a word to. He didn't even know his fucking name, but he still crushed harder than a kid. There was something about the boy that set his soul alight and his whole being on fire. 

”Just go and talk to him. It's not that hard.” Nick muttered, falling in step with him. He gave a toothy grin: ”You're Armie fucking Hammer.” 

”Oh God, not this shit again.” Armie groaned, rubbing his face with his hands to cover his burning cheeks.

”What? It's true. Every guy wants to be you and every girl wants you.” 

”In case you didn't notice, he's a guy. You don't know if he swings that way.” 

”Oh he's gay, alright? Very gay.” Nick assured him, opening the door to the French cabinet and slipping inside. Armie chuckled, following him to their usual desk.

”How do you know?” 

”How do you _not_ know? Honestly, Armz, he has the vibe of a rainbow. Aren't you supposed to have a functioning gaydar?” 

The laughter stumbled from inside him with a booming echo and everyone turned around to look at the source of the noise. He snorted, coughed, trying desperately to calm down and not draw anymore unwelcomed attention. That is until the door opened again and the cute boy walked in, the laughter dying in his throat, making him swallow with an audible gulp. The cute boy looked around, noticing the empty desk behind Armie and Nick and making his way quickly over there. 

Armie felt like he couldn't breathe, what the hell was he doing here? This was the senior's French class. He was a freshman. 

”Now it's your chance to talk.” Nick whispered in his ear. Armie shook his head, too dumbfounded to even speak and Nick rolled his eyes. ”If you won't do it, I will.” 

”Nick, no!” he managed to get out, but it was too late. His best friend was already turning in his seat with a huge grin on his lips. 

”Hi! I'm Nick. Haven't seen you around this class.” he stretched out a hand, making the boy look confused before a smile blossomed on his lips. His front teeth were the tiniest bit crooked and that made him look even cuter if it was possible. He took Nick's hand and shook it. 

”I'm Timmy.” 

Armie felt like he was going to explode. _Timmy_. What a beautiful name he had. Fitting. Cute, just like him. 

”The silent lug over here is my best friend, Armie.” 

Having those gold freckled green eyes focused on him made his heart stop. Those were beautiful eyes. Those were awfully beautiful eyes. Warm, bright, like two pools of liquid spirit that brought Armie to his knees. 

”Hi.” Timmy muttered, a thin blush covering his cheeks at Armie's very insistent stare. Holy shit, he was staring. Like a creepy, old dude watching cheerleaders. He waved, not trusting his voice enough to speak.

The gesture made Timmy giggle and Armie had to pinch his thigh to stop himself from swooning. Nick rolled his eyes at the entire exchange, before focusing once again on the cute boy. 

”Aren't you a freshman, or something? What are you doing here?”

”Oh.” Timmy muttered, shrugging his shoulders. ”I'm fluent in French and the freshman class is only a waste of time for me. The counselor thought I'd learn something here.” 

”Fancy.” Nick commented impressed. ”You know, my buddy did almost four years of French for nothing, he can't speak shit. Maybe you'll give him a hand. Put something in that thick skull of his.”

Armie felt like the sky fell on his head and he turned towards Nick with a panicked expression on his face. _WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING?!!_ he wanted to yell, but the smug glint in Nick's eyes told him just _what you should have._ Timmy giggled again, and when their eyes met he was surprised to discover that his cheeks were filling up with a blush once again. The two of them were a bunch of blushing idiots, staring at each other. Eventually it was Timmy who broke the silence, cocking his head to the side and making a strand of curly hair fall into his eyes - he pushed it back behind his ear and Armie swore his heart dropped to his stomach. 

”Yeah, I'm sure I can help.” 

Sadly the conversation was over because the teacher arrived and the both of them had to turn around in their seats. 

Nick wasn't lying when he said that he sucked at French because he did. The teacher was talking too fast for him to pick up any words, gesturing wildly and scribbling things on the blackboard. At some point she stopped, leaning against the desk with a pained expression on her face. She was probably wondering what the hell was she doing there, trying to learn a bunch of morons the language of love. Eventually she sighed, shaking her head in a manner of disappointment, before speaking again. Only this time slower, accentuating every word like she was explaining things to a bunch of babies. 

Armie barely grasped his mind around the word project when the doorbell rang, signaling the end of the class. 

”That went well.” Nick commented and Armie snorted, turning around to take his backpack. 

_Timmy._

He totally forgot about the object of his affection, being right there, behind him, and looking quite adorable while he was frowning. Like he was thinking very hard at something. 

”Would you like to be my partner for this project?” Timmy asked him, face pink and eyes downcast. ”Armie?” he clarified. 

”I - what project?” he managed to mutter, making the cute boy smile softly at him. 

”Told you he's bad at French.” Nick snickered.

”That is, if it's alright with you.” Timmy continued, turning his eyes to look at Nick. His best friend waved his hand in the air. 

”Totally, he'd love to do the project with you. Maybe this time he'll actually learn something useful.” Nick stopped and looked at Armie, trying his best not to smile that arrogant smirk of his. ”Right, buddy?”

”Uhh...” 

Armie was at loss of words. First, he didn't even know what project the teacher assigned them to do. He understood the word project, but everything else was still a mystery. Second, why did Timmy offer to pair up with him? It's not like they were friends. They didn't even spoke to each other until now. The only things Armie knew about him was that his name was Timmy and that he was exceptionally adorable. Sure, it was enough information to make him want to be his partner. And what the hell Nick was trying to do? Did he try to play the wing-man? Because Armie preferred if he didn't. Nick sucked at being the wing-man. 

”He's excited.” Nick told Timmy, clapping his hands like a little boy. ”You should give him your number, to plan the meetings for the project, of course. It'll be easier to keep in touch that way, rather than trying to find each other around here.” 

”Oh yes, good idea!” Timmy explained and his eyes once again fell on Armie. A patient smile blossomed on his lips and Nick kicked Armie under the desk, hard - making him hiss out in pain. 

”Give him your phone, dude.” 

”Right.” Armie muttered dazedly, before pulling out his phone and handing it over to Timmy. Their fingers brushed, sending a jolt of electricity through his body. By the way the cute boy's cheeks turned pink, he had the impression that Timmy felt the same buzz. 

”I sent myself a text on your phone, so I'll have your number as well.”

”Oh... good...” Armie muttered, taking his phone back. 

”Um... see you around. Nice to meet you.” the cute boy muttered quickly, before throwing his backpack over his shoulder and making himself unseen. 

Armie felt like he could breathe again and when he checked his phone he saw Timmy's number waiting in his inbox. His heart felt like it was beating out of his chest. How in the hell was that so easy? How did

Nick manage to score him Timmy's number after all the months Armie pinned over the cute boy? 

”Dude, you're so gone for the kid.” Nick chuckled, but he was smiling fondly at his friend. 

Yes, Armie wanted to yell. 

He really was.

\

_Hi, this is Timmy from French. I was wondering if we were still up for the project. :P_

A week later, Armie almost dropped his phone on the ground when he realized who sent him the text. Would it make him look desperate if he were to reply straight away? Did he really care, though? He hated when people didn't reply him immediately, so why the hell would he wait?

**Hi, Timmy. :)**

**Yes, I'm still up if you are.**  
  
It was surprisingly easy to say that through text, although he felt his hands shaking while waiting for Timmy to reply. 

_Awesome! How about we meet today? Start working on it. Deadline's in two weeks._

**Sure. What time and where?**

_After classes? Was thinking maybe the library._

The library? Armie didn't want to be surrounded by a bunch of other teenagers that were trying to make out silently in between bookshelves. Or have the librarian shush them constantly. The library wasn't a good place to start a project. He sighed, trying out his luck. 

**How about we go somewhere else? I know a place. A diner, to be precise and it's mostly empty and quiet. We can work there. And they have good food. :)**

_:D_

_Okay, sounds good. Meet you there? Just text me the address._

Everything was going well by now so what the hell. Might as well push it. 

**Actually, I have the car. I can pick you up and drop you off at home after we're done.**

_You sure? I don't want to be a bother for you. :\_

**Positive! I'll see you in the parking lot at 2:00.**

_Yes. Thank you! ^_^_

**:D**

\

At 2:10 he was beginning to worry that Timmy stood him up and he kept checking his phone for any messages from the cute boy, delivering a lame excuse, or even telling Armie that he didn't find him to be a suitable partner for the project. Something inside of him clenched and broke at the thought of being so damn repulsive for Timmy that he didn't even want to try and be some sort of friends. 

He was also annoyed that Nick wasn't around to try and soothe his nerves. His best friend would probably smack his head upside down and tell him things like _maybe he forgot, maybe his class ran a little late, maybe he went to the bathroom and there was a line_ , but Armie couldn't help himself, he still worried that he might have screwed up somehow. 

He checked his phone again, sighing at the 2:13 that was plastered over his screen. Maybe he should write Timmy a text, or even call him, see what was happening and why was he late, before he caught something in the corner of his eye. Putting his phone back in his pocket he felt his heart squeeze with joy upon seeing the cute boy run across the field and into the parking lot, soft, dark curls jumping with his every move. 

”I'm so sorry for making you wait!” was the first thing Timmy exclaimed while simultaneously trying to inhale through his nose. ”I kept talking to my friend after class was over and I didn't notice how time flew by.” 

”It's okay, try to catch your breath, yeah?” Armie muttered, instinctively moving his hand to pat the cute boy on the back. He straightened up, cocking his head to the side and putting on the smile that got him every guy and every girl. _Work that charm, Hammer,_ the voice inside his head yelled. It sounded surprisingly close to Nick's. He was very happy to notice that his smile didn't leave Timmy indifferent, face and ears flaming with the power of his blush. The cute boy tried to shake his hair over his face to cover himself up. ”I was beginning to think you stood me up.” Armie teased, circling the car and opening the door for his companion. Like the true gentleman his mama raised.

”I wouldn't.” Timmy murmured, peering through his lashes at Armie. ”No one opened the door for me before.” 

”Stick around and I'm going to open them all for you.” with a wink tossed in Timmy's direction, Armie closed the door before going to the driver's seat and starting the car. 

They made small talk on the way to the diner. _Mama's_ was a very special place for him, discovered when he was about ten. Now he was their favorite patron, their favorite guest and he always made sure to visit it at least a couple of times a week. He spent a lot of time from his teenage years there, talking to the customers and the employees who became sort of a second family to him and sometimes even filling in when someone was sick or troubled. Mama was in fact a 60 year old spitfire of a woman, and Armie loved her with all of his soul. She offered him advice, a shoulder to cry on, kisses, hugs and the best peach cobbler in town. She was his role model, so genuine and kind. Ever since he got his driver's license he made sure to drive her home after the diner closed. Scrubbing the floors and the tables, washing dishes and making sure everything was in order for the next day, before taking Mama's hand in his and leading her to his car. Her house was on the way to his home and he was always happy to help. 

”Hope you're ready for the peach cobbler you've ever had in your life.” Armie said, pulling his har into an empty parking slot. Timmy giggled that adorable laugh at his, and Armie found himself beaming. 

”I don't think I've ever had peach cobbler.”

”Then I'm happy to introduce you to the best one in town.”

The diner was pretty deserted, as always at this time of the day and Clara, Mama's granddaughter waved at him from behind the coffee machine. She was a nice girl, she was 16 and just like Timmy she was a freshman, but she was going to another high-school. He waved back, and Clara gasped in surprise when she noticed he wasn't alone. Mama told him that her granddaughter had a crush on Armie ever since he started to hang around at the diner, when he was ten, but Armie couldn't really see her that way. She was more the annoying little sister he never had. 

Armie lead Timmy to his usual booth, in the back of the diner were they wouldn't be disturbed by other customers or the meddling employees. He needed just a look in the direction of the counter to see that everyone from the busboy to the cook and Mama were gathered around Clara, watching his every move with big eyes. He rolled his eyes. 

”This is nice.” Timmy commented. ”I love the atmosphere, it's so vintage.”

”It is. _Mama's_ is my soul place, first time I came here it was eight years ago. Almost nothing changed other than me becoming part of their little family.” 

Timmy smiled softly at him, brushing his curly hair behind his ears and Armie's hands itched to his sides. He wanted to reach out and have the courage to touch him. To see if his hair really was that soft to the touch as it appeared and feel the power of that blush under his fingertips. With everyone else he might have, might have pulled the moves out and by the end of the day even go somewhere with that person to make out. But Timmy wasn't everybody else, he was the person his soul craved the most and he didn't want to fuck up and scare him forever. Before he could think of something else to say a shadow fell over his head. 

”Look at what the cat's dragged in.” Mama said cheerfully, making him grin. She bent, tapping her cheek with a finger and he pressed a loud kiss on her smooth skin. 

”Hi, Mama.” 

”Hi, baby boy. I see that you finally brought something for me to meet.” she turned towards Timmy who blushed under the power of her crystal clear blue eyes. ”And what a piece of cutie pie you have here! I approve.” 

”Oh God...” Armie cringe, feeling his cheeks warm up with embarrassment. 

”I'm June. But you can call me Mama, everyone does, my dear.” 

”Hello, I'm Timothée.” the cute boy replied, with that adorable smile of his. ”But call me Timmy.” 

”You are positively adorable, love. So let me assume what the two of you are doing here...”

Armie cut her off before she could embarrass him further. 

”A project. Timmy and I are partners for a French project so we came here instead of going to the library because it's... better.”

”Of course it's better.” Mama scoffed, ruffling his hair. She turned to Timmy with squinted eyes. 

”Est-ce que tu parles français?”

”Oui. Mon père est français et cela me fait parler couramment la langue.”

”Ah, le langage de l'amour. Hopefully you can put some French in this boy's head. Lord knows I've been trying to do that for the past eight years.” 

Timmy chuckled, looking at Armie through his lashes. 

”Yes, that's sort of the point.” 

”Alright, babies, what can I get you?”


	2. two.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe the response on this thing!!! Thank you so, so much, guys, it means a lot to me - especially since this is my first Charmie fic. I was afraid that it might turn into a disappointment.   
> Hope that everyone is holding up okay with all of the craziness that's out there. My country is in lock-down even though, compared to others, we have very few cases of coronavirus. My heart goes out to everyone here and all of your families. Remember, no matter where you're from, to minimize contact with other people, wash your hands and stay inside. In times like these it's very important to follow the rules. Staying strong and staying inside will help us beat this virus! 
> 
> P.S.: I know that Pauline is like four years older than Timmy, but I wanted him to have a baby sister because he's going to be the best big brother in the world. :)
> 
> All the love :)

Armie Hammer was something else. 

Something entirely new from what he's heard about him.

Timmy expected him to be this cocky bastard, being the captain of the football team, he was completely entitled to behaving that way. Like everything in the world was for him to have. Every boy and every girl and every good opportunity. But a while ago Timmy made the decision to never judge a book by it's cover. 

He didn't with Armie. 

And it was the best decision he ever made in his life. 

Because Armie Hammer wasn't just an arrogant, playboy jock. He was a distractingly handsome guy and the clumsiest and shyest person Timmy ever met besides himself. That was new and refreshing and so, so exciting. Having the privilege of seeing the true face of probably the most popular guy in school. Timmy could perfectly remembered how, in his first day as a freshman, confused and feeling awkward like he didn't belong in that place with those big hallways, Armie was the first person he heard about.

~~(from a couple of cheerleaders that were wondering how big his cock was)~~

Timmy was under the impression that the guy liked him as well, judging by the number of times he caught him staring at his face instead of listening to what he was trying to explain. It made him feel out in the open, like Armie was a predator and he was the prey, ready to be eaten. He wasn't used to people staring at his face. He wasn't used to people staring at him period. And especially not someone like Armie Hammer. He discovered that he liked that warm feeling in the pit of his stomach, the feeling of realizing that he was wanted by someone, something he never experienced before. 

It made him feel extra special when June - _Mama_ \- came around to their table, to check if everything was alright and if they were working on the project, and she let it slip that Armie never brought someone to the diner. To the point where she wondered if the poor guy had any friends, or if her and her employees were his only friends. Her comment made Armie blush to the roots of his light hair, and it made Timmy feel like his heart might explode with delight. He didn't want to make him more uncomfortable so he didn't ask why was Timmy his first choice to bring to the diner. 

He was more than happy to work on the project and make small talk until it was time to leave. 

”Shouldn't we ask for the check?” Timmy asked and the older boy laughed, shaking his head. 

”Are you kidding? She'd gut both of us if we even dared to mention money. I haven't paid for a single thing in all the years I've come here.”

”Well... you. Not me.” Timmy offered, shoving his books and papers in his backpack. 

”Trust me, seeing you here with me was enough of a payment.” He put on his jacket and shuffled awkwardly on his feet. ”Can I take you home?”

”I think I was enough of a bother for you today.” Timmy muttered. ”I can catch a bus, or walk. It's not very far either.”

”No trouble. I'm sure you're in my way.”

Timmy debated. He didn't really want for the day to end, he couldn't remember the last time he had such a great time with someone who wasn't Saoirse, his sister or his parents. Plus he basked in Armie's attention and his presence, he wanted to absorb every thing the other boy wanted to share, so he nodded his head. 

”If it's not a problem then yes. Thank you.”

Armie's answering smile was the best gift he could ask for.

It took a while to leave because Mama insisted on kissing and hugging them both. 

”I'll see you tomorrow, yeah?” she asked Armie. ”And put on a warmer coat, it's starting to get colder with each day. I don't want my boy to get the flu.”

”Yes, Mama. Do you want me to come and pick you up tonight?”

”No, son, me and Clara can walk. Another day, perhaps.” she kissed his cheeks again before turning in Timmy's direction. ”And you.” the hug she pulled him in was tight and comfortable, making the cute boy instantly melt in her arms. There was something pure about her, something absolutely beautiful and Timmy's soul reached out for hers. ”Come again soon. Don't wait for Armie to bring you here, just come on your own, you're more than welcome.”

”I will, thank you.” Timmy replied, his voice muffled by Mama's thin sweater. The woman pulled back, but kept her arms hovering over Timmy's frame. She grinned, ruffling the curls on his head and giggling when those flopped in his eyes. 

”You're the cutest little thing there is, finally this idiot picked a good person.” 

”Hey!” Armie protested lightly, rolling his eyes at Mama's words. 

”Go, take him before I change my mind and keep him with me forever.” Mama suddenly let go of Timmy, turning around and dashing in the kitchen. It surprised a laugh out of the boy that died quickly when he felt warm fingers cupping his wrist. 

”Let's go, she meant that.” 

”I take it that she liked me.” Timmy commented, trying to will himself to calm down and not kick the fucking car that was parked outside the diner. He hated that Armie had to let go of his wrist so they could get inside, he wouldn't have minded to go home like this instead of having to take the vehicle. 

”Like? She loves you. Next time you're here she's going to fuss over you as much as she does with me. Mama can be a little overbearing, but she means well.” 

”She seems to love you very much.” Timmy commented, watching as Armie's fingers flexed on the steering wheel while he was making the neccessary movements to exit the parking lot. 

”She does.” the older boy replied with a gentle smile. ”She said that I remind her of her husband, especially since I grew up. He passed away ten years ago from a sudden, ridiculous heart attack and I think she never recovered. He was her first love and her one and only and I know that sometimes she still cries over him even though it's been a decade. I went with her to the cemetery, on his birthday, because she wanted to introduce me to the person she loved and loves the most and we just sat there talking to Papa Earl through his grave. It was a pretty emotional day for me, but ever since then I always go with her to the cemetery on Papa Earl's birthday.”

”That's such a beautiful thing to do.” Timmy muttered, feeling like if he talked any louder, the bubble that existed over the two of them might break. He gestured for Armie to take a left at the next intersection before going over his words in his head. 

”I think she wants me to have a relationship as theirs. Filled with love and respect and adoration, that's why she worries so much about me. Saying that I should stop for a minute and wait for my soulmate to find me. _How is love going to find you when you're always on that damn football field?_ she would say.”

”Do you think you'll ever find something like that?”

Armie looked him in the eye, briefly because he had to concentrate on the road ahead of him. His eyes were a precious shade of blue. Very intense, like the sky on a spring day, when there's not a single cloud on it, only endless miles of blue. Two pools of liquid sky that had the capacity to bring you to your knees and Timmy loved the way that look made him feel. Not like he was the only person on the planet, because even if he wasn't, Armie would still look at him like he was. 

”God” he replied eventually ”I hope so.”

\

He found a note on the kitchen island from his parents, telling him that they took Pauline to the park and they weren't going to stay long. He was actually a little glad to not have his six year old sister droving him mad with question about who was the boy that drove him home. He knew that his parents weren't going to push him into giving details he wasn't comfortable with, but that couldn't be said about Pauline considering that she was only a kid and she was basically unstoppable when she wanted to know something. Timmy would have had to tell her eventually, even though he didn't know what to say. 

Armie was barely an aquintance, let alone something else. They properly knew and introduced each other a week ago and managed to know each other better in the course of a few hours. He couldn't exactly call him a friend and he definitely couldn't call him something else. 

Truth was he liked Armie very much. Liked him even before getting to know him a little bit. It was hard not to, he was a good, genuine person that stood up for what he believed in and was friendly with everyone that approached him. Timmy observed him in various occasions, talking to his group of jocks, his football team, or helping one of the nerds in the chess club with carrying books. Maybe that's why everybody liked him, that's why he looked like the stereotypical american golden boy, but acted like a decent human being. 

Plus, he had eyes, alright? And he hung out at the bleachers with Saoirse and Ansel a bunch of times when the football team was in training. That body should be illegal on a 18 year old, and Timmy was only human. He had his own set of fantasies involving Armie Hammer and he was allowed to look. He thought he wasn't allowed to touch until today. 

Timmy was pretty sure Armie liked him. Like like him and he didn't exactly know what to do with that information. He knew that he didn't exactly fit Armie's type of people - 

~~(he's seen his friends, alright? the guy was surrounded by gorgeous people.)~~

\- with his long limbs and awkward posture and messy hair. 

\- plus the face that made him look younger than 16. 

\- it was annoying, _honestly_.

But who was he to judge someone's taste? 

He couldn't wait to tell everything to Saoirse, hear what she thought about everything. She knew that he was the type of person that dreamt with his eyes open, that's why he needed to meet with his friend as soon as possible and listen to everything she had to say. She was the kind of person that judged everything with cold blood meaning that it was really hard to impress her sometimes. Plus she was more radical and she seemed to know Timmy better than he knew himself. Taking his phone from his pocket he shoot a text to Saoirse:

_brunch tomorrow? it's saturday. i need to tell you smth._

**k, 11:30? meet me at Espresso?**

_yay, thanks :)_

\

”It always worries me when you say that you need to tell me something.” Saoirse whispered between themselves, the next day, after they've already hugged, ordered food and made small talk. ”So spit it out, Chalamet.”

”Hey! I didn't do anything stupid.” 

”This time.” she snorted. Both of them laughed, because, well... it was true. Their friendship was a very transparent one, they always made sure to tell each other everything. Saoirse told him about her very first kiss, and she was the first person he came out to, even before his parents. They never judged one another, and Timmy loved her dearly. He was lucky to have someone like her in his life, let alone have her as his best friend. 

”Wait, first I need to ask if it has anything to do with that Armie Hammer guy.” 

Timmy rised one of his eyebrows, confused, and she bursted in giggles. 

”I knew it.”

”What do you mean by that?”

”Did he finally pull the moves on you? About fucking time.” 

”Wait, what?” Timmy continued. 

”Dude, I'm pretty sure that guy is in love with you.” 

It was Timmy's turn to laugh. 

”Yeah, right.” 

His best friend facepalmed, rolling her eyes like she couldn't believe how much of a giant idiot Timmy was. 

”That guy has been starring at your skinny ass since you first entered the highschool. He's completely whipped.” and just to proove her point, she made a whipping sound in the back of her throat. ”How did he do it?”

”He didn't actually. I asked him if he wanted to be my partner for a French project.”

”No shit.” at Timmy's grin, Saoirse clapped her hands impressed. ”I'll be damned, well congratulations, you finally got the balls to do something for yourself. And even scoring a hot piece of ass.”

”I didn't score anything.” Timmy laughed, shaking his head. ”We just talked. And worked on the project. And he drove me home after that.” 

”How sweet. I might throw up.” Saoirse commented, but he could see it in her eyes that she was happy for him. 

When their food arrived, the Armie subject was closed and all they did was complain about their teachers, homework and other irrelevant things that made them laugh. It was just after their plates were cleared away, and they were slowly getting ready to pack things up and part ways for the rest of the weekend, when Timmy saw Armie entering the bistro accompanied by Nick and a girl he didn't personally know, but knew that she was the head cheerleader of the squad. All three of them were laughing loudly, and Timmy melted on the spot upon noticing that bright grin of Armie's that completely filled the entire room. 

He must have had the feeling of being watched - 

~~(Timmy couldn't take his eyes off of him)~~

\- because his eyes snapped in his and Saoirse's direction and if it was possible, his smile got even bigger. 

Next thing he knew, Armie was approaching their table, turning only briefly to say something to Nick and the girl. 

”Hi.” he was bouncing excitedly in his seat, making Armie chuckle. 

”Hello, great to see you here.” 

”You too.” 

It was one of those ridiculous moments from movies, where the two main characters looked at each other and the rest of the world disappeared. Timmy always thought those scenes were ridiculous, but looking at him, he realized that yes, he could only see Armie. His gorgeous smile and beautiful eyes and everything in between. How he fidgeted from one foot to the other because he was nervous. Judging from the way he was staring at Timmy, Armie felt the same thing. Sadly, Saoirse broke the silence and the spell, by faking a cough. Timmy could strangle here if he wasn't so busy blushing. 

”Uh, this is Saoirse.” he made the neccessary introductions. 

”Hi” the girl quipped, extending a hand. ”I'm his _best friend._ ” 

The way she emphasised the last words was obvious even to Timmy's ears. Apparently Armie found that amusing. 

”Nice to meet you. I'm Armie.” 

_God, but he hoped that Saoirse wasn't going to say something stupid like_ **I know.**

”Would you two like to join us?” he gestured back in the general direction of ”his two friends.

”Actually we're quite done and were just ready to leave.” Timmy replied, before his friend could. He could see it in the gleam of her eyes that she had a stupid plan. A stupid plan like saying yes, dragging him there before making a half hearted excuse as to why she couldn't stay any longer. Her eyes bore into him for a second, but thankfully Armie didn't notice. If looks could kill, Timmy would have been dead already. 

”Oh, maybe another time.” 

”We'd love to... raincheck.” Saoirse said with a tight-lipped smile before glaring in Timmy's direction and standing up. ”It was great to meet you.” 

”You too.” Armie beamed before his eyes found Timmy's again. ”Um... are you free tomorrow?”

”It's Sunday, I think so. Why?” Timmy said, feeling his throat squeeze with nerves. 

”I was thinking that maybe we could grab a bite to eat.” 

”I'd love to.” he grinned excitedly, before deciding to tone it down a bit. ”Work some more on the project?”

”The project, yes. Correct. That's what I wanted to say next.”

”Awesome.” the cute boy giggled. Armie was positively adorable when he was embarrassed. ”Same place?”

”Of course. I'll pick you up? It's on my way.” 

”Okay, that works. What time?”

Armie shuffled his feet, casting a glance in Nick's direction, before shaking his head. 

”I'll call you later and we'll decide what time works for both of us.” 

”Alright.” 

”Alright. Nice to meet you again, Saoirse. Later.” he waved awkwardly, before turning on his heels and bumping in the first chair that was in the way. 

”Bye!” Saoirse shouted after him, grabbing Timmy's arm and dragging him out of the bistro. 

\

**you're going on a date!!!!!!!!!!!!**

_i'm nooooot._

...right...?


	3. three.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiii!!! Hope that everyone is happy and healthy! Thank you so much for your comments and your support, you guys. You have no idea how much it means to me. :)   
> This chapter is shorter than the first two, but I promise you it's fluffy. I love writing fluff, honestly, it makes me so happy. I know the tags say it's going to be light angst, and it will get a bit angsty, but it'll be worth it for all of the fluff afterwards.   
> Let me know what you think in the comment section!
> 
> All the looooooove

”This is not a date.” Armie told himself while checking his appearance in the mirror for the hundredth time. God, was the turtleneck too much? Would it make him seem like he put a lot of effort into looking good? His mother always said that turtlenecks were his thing because it showed off his figure, so he took that as a compliment, meaning that he had a great body. He shook his head and left the bathroom. A turtleneck was just a turtleneck, not some piece of fancy clothing, and he actually loved that one: it was black, soft and the neck of it wasn't that high, so it was casual.

Plus, it's not like he had anymore time left to change, he'd be late for picking the cute boy and he didn't like that. Punctuality was the thing he appreciated most about himself. He put on some boots, his jacket and threw his backpack over his shoulder before shouting a salute to his parents and hurrying to the car. The drive to Timmy took no more than fifteen minutes, because sadly he managed to catch all the red lights. But it was alright, he had enough time to calm his nerves and reflect on the conversation with the cute boy from last night.

He felt his heart soar in his chest. He decided to wait until after dinner with his parents, thinking that Timmy probably had other engagements too. Armie was glad that he did. He caught Timmy just after finishing both his homework and dinner with his family and they quickly decided on the convenient time - _four o'clock is good_. That meant they talked on the phone until after midnight and Armie was amazed by the number of things he's learned about his crush.

Timmy liked to read and he could play both guitar and piano. He could also speak French, Italian, English and a little bit of German - although he wasn't exactly fluent in the last one. They compared their ideas, their favorite superheroes and even their zodiacs - Timmy was a Capricorn, and he was a Virgo. He learned that the cute boy has a little sister, Pauline, whom he adored with all of his being because she was the cutest six year old on the planet. Armie felt himself swoon, he knew just from hearing him talk, that he was a great big brother.

He wasn't surprised when Timmy was already waiting for him on the porch of his house, looking adorable in a large pink hoodie and black joggers. He also looked fidgety, but offered a big smile when Armie parked his car.

”Hi!” Timmy said, breathless. ”I tried to call you.”

”Really, you did?” he checked his pockets for his phone and of course it was on silent. He had two texts and two missed calls from Timmy and that made him frown. ”Is there something wrong?”

The cute boy's bottom lip got caught between his teeth and Armie couldn't help himself but look at the way his mouth curved deliciously. He wanted to bite that lip, wanted to kiss him so hard he'd bruise his flawless, pale skin.

”I'm sorry, but my parents went on a date because they haven't been on a date since forever and I'm stuck babysitting Pauline until they come back. We can either reschedule, take Pauline with us at the diner or stay here and work on the project. Either way she won't be trouble, unless you want to reschedule.”

Reschedule? No. He had two days of seeing the boy constantly and he wasn't going to ruin his life and deny the pleasure of being in close proximity to the cute boy just because he had to take care of his little sister. Rescheduling wasn't even an option. He contemplated about taking the two of them to the diner, but that made him think about Pauline. He wasn't going to make the poor six year old go through hours of boredom in an unfamiliar place. So he turned off the engine, unbuckled his seat belt and gestured for Timmy to move from the door so he could step out of the car.

”We can stay here.”

Timmy squinted his eyes, looking embarrassed.

”Are you sure? We can reschedule and we can take Pauline with us, if that would be more comfortable for you.”

”Timmy, Pauline doesn't have to suffer because of us, no matter how well behaved she is, she'll get bored eventually. And... I really, really don't want to reschedule.” he made sure to let out how much he wanted to spend his time in Timmy's company. Eventually the cute boy smiled, nodding his head before gesturing towards the house in a _let's go_ sort of manner.

It was a two-story house and it looked cozy and lovely, he liked it even before stepping inside the hall. Timmy mentioned that he's lived in that house his whole life and that meant that everything was part of him, giving that meeting a sort of intimacy Armie never felt before in his life.

He took off his shoes before getting rid of his jacket and smoothing a hand down his jeans. Timmy turned around to say something, but his eyes never traveled higher than Armie's chest. The older boy smirked. Yes, the turtleneck was a very good idea. The best idea he's had in a while, actually. Seeing Timmy's dumbstruck expression made the almost meltdown he had in his room worth it. He knew that the soft material of the clothing item looked like an invitation to snuggle, and the way it stretched over his frame, outlining the muscles he worked so hard for, was well... hot...

Armie cleared his throat, and Timmy blinked, surprised before the blush blossomed high on his cheeks.

”My eyes are up here, you know?” the older boy teased and if it was possible, Timmy blushed harder.

”Very funny.” the cute boy muttered, mock punching his arm.

”Hey, you were the one ogling my boobs.”

”I wasn't ogling your boobs!” Timmy exclaimed through heaps of laughter. ”I was admiring the view.”

His comment was so unexpected that it left Armie speechless, making the cute boy smirk satisfied.

”Two can play the same game.” Armie sputtered and Timmy laughed harder.

They entered the living room, a spacious place filled with books, a fire place and some really comfortable-looking couches.

And the six year old sitting cross-legged in front of the TV, giggling at cartoons.

”Poupée?” Timmy asked softly, as to not startle the girl. ”Monte a l'étage. S'il te plaît.” he picked a random toy from the couch and went next to the little girl, placing his hand on top of her head. Eventually Pauline broke herself from the spell, looking up at her big brother with a frown.

”Why?”

”Because I have a friend over and we have to work on a project.”

The little girl scoffed, plucking the toy from her brother's grip and rising to her feet. When she turned around, Armie was pinned by the same beautiful eyes as Timmy's. They had the same soft bone structure, that angelic look that was, in all its power, devilish, same pale skin, but not the same shade of hair - Pauline's was lighter.

”You're the friend?” she questioned him, with the innocence of a little girl. She didn't seem to mind that her brother was sending her to her room.

”Yes. I'm Armie.”

”Pauline.” the little girl said, gesturing to herself. ”Are you the boy that doesn't know French?”

Armie rised an eyebrow in Timmy's direction, laughing.

”Yes, that's me.”

”Bête.” Pauline giggled.

”Did you call me stupid?” Armie asked her, trying to control his laughter.

”No, she called you a silly and Pauline please refrain from insulting my friends.” Timmy groaned, giving her a gentle shove to get her moving. Pauline stopped next to Armie, looking up at him in wonder. Everybody was tall next to her, she was just a kid afteral, but Armie must have looked like a giant for the little girl.

”You're hu-u-ge.” she whispered before darting in the direction of the stairs, leaving the older boy chuckling.

”Are you and Timmy going to kiss?”

”I don't know that, why?” Armie asked, looking over his shoulder to the cute boy who looked ready to start digging a grave for him to die. He was so dramatic sometimes. Just like last night when Armie admitted to not seeing a single Spider-man movie, because he didn't really like the character and Timmy almost threw a fit.

”Because I think he'd really like that.” the little girl smiled, taking the steps two-by-two, leaving an embarrassed Timmy and a grinning Armie behind.

\

They’ve been working on the project for two hours straight and Armie was feeling a bit nervous because he could see how quickly they were approaching the final. He didn’t want that. What if the project was the only thing keeping them together, seeing as it was the only reason the two of them even began to talk in the first place. And whenever they talked or met each other it was the same, because of the project. Armie didn’t want that. He wanted to have other reasons to spend his time in the cute boy’s company. Especially since he realized they had so many things in common. He had to come up with a strategy, something that’ll keep their relationship going, and even evolve into something more.

He didn’t realize he was staring at Timmy, until the boy turned his head and gave him a questioning look.

”What’s wrong?”

”Are we going to keep seeing each other after this project is over?” Armie blurted out, feeling the exact moment his soul left his body. Timmy’s eyebrows pinched together in an adorable frown.

”Why wouldn’t we?” he asked confused.

”I don’t know… because we always ever hung together because of this project… I just – wouldn’t want that to end, that’s all. Would you even like me if you weren’t forced to do this with me?”

”First of all, I’m not forced to do anything with you, I asked you to be my partner and second I like you plenty, so there’s no need to worry about that. You’re… a great guy.” Timmy finished with one of his soft smiles.

”Good. Because I like you too.” _Maybe more than you could ever imagine._ ”Is this the part were we’re supposed to kiss?”

Timmy groaned while Armie snickered, and in a moment of insane happiness, he put his arms around the smaller boy’s body and dragged him close. Timmy didn’t protest, nor tried to struggle out of Armie’s hug. He tensed at first, surprised, but it took him a second to melt against his chest. The cute boy was a great fit, his peach-scented head nuzzling under his chin, his entire being disappearing in Armie’s body. Although he was all sharp bones and pointy elbows, he was also soft, great to cuddle, in a way only a cat could be. Armie could spend the rest of his life just cuddling the boy. There wasn’t a place in the whole world he would rather be.

” Qu'est-ce que tu fais?” came a little voice from the direction of the stairs and when they looked over they saw Pauline looking confused. He was expecting Timmy to pull away, maybe offer a half hearted explanation to his little sister. Instead, the cute boy stretched out his hand, gesturing for the girl to come closer.

” Nous câlins. Venez ici.”

Pauline grinned, with the excitement of a six year old, before she was throwing herself in her brother’s arms, making both him and Armie grunt. She was small, but damn, she was strong. Timmy giggled, putting his arms around her and cuddling her close, and Armie’s insides all but melted. His heart was beating so fast, he could see Timmy jump with every beat. The cute boy raised his head to look at him, and at the awkward angle, his mouth caressed Armie’s jawline.

”Is this okay?” Timmy whispered.

Armie wanted to scream that it was more than okay. He wanted to scream that he’d spend the rest of their mortal lives cuddled like that: him, Timmy and Pauline. He wanted to tell him how good his hair smelled. How perfectly he fit against Armie, like they were made for each other, two puzzle pieces. He refrained himself from doing so and instead pulled the cute boy closer than it was humanly possible, crushing his frame in his arms, like he wanted to get Timmy inside of him.

_This,_ he said to himself, content to listen the two siblings giggle and talk in French, _this is what having a soulmate feels like._


	4. four.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *DJ Khaled's voice* another one  
> So I was hit by a wave of inspiration, I don't really have the energy to correct this so please excuse my grammar in this chapter. Enjoy it, it's really fluffy. :) 
> 
> All the looooove

”I like him.” Pauline whispered shyly to him, when he was tucking her in the bed for the night. Armie went home a few hours ago, after they finished cuddling and made some pasta for the three of them to cook. Timmy was reluctant to think about what seeing Armie and Pauline interact did to his insides. He couldn’t think that far in the future, not when he didn’t even have the present. But they at least had fun, making a mess out of the kitchen while both of them worked together to deliver some sort of decent meal for the little girl. His sister was happy to eat their experiment and she even encouraged them to start cooking.

The truth was that he was happy to hear Armie ask about their future as some sort of friends after the project will be over. He couldn’t bring himself to do that, even if he liked the boy very much and he didn’t want to put Armie in an uncomfortable position in case he wanted to stop hanging out with him. Having the older boy break the ice was a relief.

”You did?” he asked his sister, upon realizing that he never answered her.

”Yes, he seems like a nice boy. And he’s very good looking.” she continued, teasing Timmy with a smile.

”He is, isn’t he?” Timmy sighed, dropping on the empty spot next to his sister and she instantly rolled to cuddle against his chest. She was his whole world, cramped in a tiny human that was bursting with love. He remembered being only nine when his parents told him that they were expecting, and how much he dreaded the thought of not being the only person at the receiving end of their attention. He also remembered how desperately he wanted a brother, someone to teach soccer and basketball and play with trucks and later in life teach him how to drive – a sort of extension of his being. He was devastated when he found out that his perfect little brother was in fact a perfect little sister and he cried for three days straight, refusing to even acknowledge or look at the baby. His parents let him be, giving him enough space and time to get accustomed to the idea of having a sister.

Although he hated her in the beginning, he grew fond of the little bundle of joy and soon enough he was worshiping her. He learned to change diapers, fix her milk and the rest of her baby food and he was happy with watching princess cartoons and play with dolls instead of trucks. He knew that even though Pauline turned out to be a girl he could still teach her how to play soccer and basketball, and teach her how to drive. He knew that he was going to be fussing over her, protecting her from every bad thing in this life and probably take some boxing lessons just so he could punch the douche-bags that try to break her heart.

”Do you like him?” Pauline asked innocently, biting back a yawn.

Timmy looked at her, laughing, and kissed the top of her head.

”Yeah, I like him very much.”

”I think he likes you too.” she said.

”Why do you say that?”

”Because he looks at you the same way Papa looks at Mommy. Like you’re the only thing he sees.”

Timmy contemplated, feeling himself blush. It was ridiculous how often and how easy just thinking at Armie made him blush. Even though he wasn’t present.

”You’re awfully articulate for a six year old.” Timmy mumbled, biting her earlobe and making Pauline giggle.

”Will you stay with me until I fall asleep?”

”Sure, want me to read you something?”

”Yes!!!” Pauline yelled excitedly. ” Can you read me that story in Italian?”

” _Io sono piccola?_ Sure, I can do that.”

Pauline scooted on her side, allowing her brother to move and take the book from the shelf. It was her favorite bedtime story, even though she didn’t understand most of it. Timmy brought it for her when she was four and they probably read it over a thousand times by now, but she still cherished it like it was the first time. Pauline always said that she liked it best when Timmy read to her and he made sure to do that as often as possible.

”Okay, from the beginning?” he asked after he settled, the little girl dropping on top of him, resting her head against his chest.

”From the beginning.” she mumbled.

Three pages in and Pauline was already asleep, breathing heavily and making cute noises in her sleep. He realized that and continued to read, even though his audience was already out for the world. Timmy liked spending time with his sister, weather she was awake or asleep and he always made sure to do that as often as possible. Their parents must be proud of him, seeing that he got over his sadness of not having a baby brother and loving the little girl so much.

He stopped reading only when he felt his phone buzzing in his pocket with a new notification. It was a message from Armie.

 **What are you up to?** it said.

He gripped the phone tighter, angling it so he could snap a picture of him and Pauline. It looked cute, even though Pauline’s mouth was a bit open making her drool all over Timmy’s hoodie, and that his hair was messy not in the flattering way.

_Finished putting the little monster to sleep. You?_

**Fuck me.**

**You’re so adorable I can’t even.**

**Pauline is an angel, I love her already.**

The three messages came in quick succession, making the boy grin harder than before. He closed the book, put Pauline gently to bed and exited the room. He heard noises coming from downstairs so he assumed that his parents were home at last. Timmy quickly scurried to his room and jumped in the bed to give Armie a reply.

_That’s good, because she likes you too. She said you are good looking. ;)_

**Good thing I have her on my side.**

_Why do you need Pauline on your side for?_

**To win your heart, of course.** **J**

_That can be arranged even without Pauline’s help. :P_

**Yeah? My awkwardness turns you on Chalamet?**

Timmy sputtered a laugh and moved his hand to cover his mouth. Armie was such an idiot, but in the good sense of the word, of course. He decided to respond with the same card, tease the boy a little.

_Yes, especially when I know that you’re awkward only when I’m around. ;)_

**Not my fault you’re so pretty I can’t even concentrate on breathing.**

Damn, he was good.

_I’ll just keep being pretty, then. It’s cute seeing you all flustered._

**It’s not like you have to put in a lot of effort. You could wear a potato sack and still be the most beautiful kid out there. :)**

_Stooooop!!! My heart did a funny thing upon reading that._

**Aw, am I making you nervous?**

”Keep that up and I’ll be falling in love with you by the time this conversation is over.” Timmy whispered to himself in the dark.

_No, you’re making me blush._

**Good, I like that.**

_We should go to bed._

**Let me take you out to dinner first. Don’t want you to think that I’m trying to take advantage of your hot body. ;)**

_I meant to sleep._

**Hmm, that works too considering we’ve cuddled already.**

_I’m saying yes to that because I liked the cuddle. You’re a giant, cuddly teddy-bear._

**I’m 6’5”, you should be calling me daddy.**

_No, guys my height think that they should be called daddy. Guys your height are called baby. You’re baby._

**Okay. I’m baby.**

**You’re angel.**

**:)**

_Glad we agree. Good night, baby._

**Good night, angel.**

**\**

He was most definitely not jealous.

He didn’t have any right to be jealous, of course. So he wasn’t jealous. Jealousy was for silly kids. And couples. Two things he and Armie weren’t – neither silly kids, nor a couple. It was stupid to feel jealous of a girl he didn’t even know and it was stupid to feel jealous only after days and days of cute conversation, one cuddling session and some stupid nicknames.

But the nicknames, oh, the nicknames. That was totally a couple-y thing to do, right? No. It was stupid. You could have cute nicknames for everyone. Saoirse was ”Birdie” for him, that’s what he was calling her. And they weren’t a couple, they were best friends. Friends could have cute nicknames for each other, not only dorky ones.

Yet he couldn’t deny the way his blood froze in his veins when he saw, from afar, how close the head cheerleader was leaning over Armie. And how he didn’t seem to mind, if only he turned in her direction, like a sunflower does to the sun, listening and taking in every single word she was saying. He was such an idiot, and so damn pathetic, because he told himself that that was nothing. He was overly affectionate with Saoirse as well, they were always touching somehow, always hugged and kissed on the cheek when they met and departed. Maybe the head cheerleader was Armie’s Saoirse.

No, Saoirse would never wonder how big his cock is and he could clearly remember that the head cheerleader was among those girls that were talking about Armie’s cock. However much he disliked that kind of behavior, he couldn’t help but sulk through the first round of classes until lunchtime and when he met with Saoirse and Ansel for lunch he was still in a bad mood. Kept thinking at how that girl leaned into Armie, how he let and welcomed her attention. It made all the insecurities start to whisper in the back of his head. Why would someone like Armie even want someone like him? What if he talked to everybody the way he talked to Timmy. God, what if it was all just a scam and Timmy would be the centre of attention for falling for the cute – even possibly straight guy. He tried to convince himself that Armie wasn’t like that. He was a sweet guy, a mountain of a man that turned to goo whenever Timmy was around. Blushing, stuttering mess and you couldn’t fake that. No one could, no matter how good of an actor he was. But what if, though, what if…?

”Hellooo! Earth to Chalamet.” Saoirse yelled in his ear, snapping him out of his insane reverie. He cringed, looking around at the people that were staring at their table and when he looked back at his friends, they were already halfway through their meals while he didn’t even touch his. ”What’s gotten into you today? You seem off.” Even though she scoffed the words, he could clearly see the concern in his eyes. It was like she was asking him what was wrong through her eyes.

”Nothing, sorry. You were saying something?”

Even Ansel stopped eating and frowned at him and Ansel had to be the most oblivious person on the planet.

”Dude, what happened?”

”Did someone pick on you again? Was it Sebastian? I’m going to kick his sorry ass.” Saoirse fumed, slamming her hand on the table with a little too much force.

”Keep it down, everybody’s staring at us already.” Timmy sighed, picking up his fork and moving the vegetables around. He wasn’t hungry anymore, he just wanted to finish with the day, go home, lay on the bed and think if the connection he felt with Armie was just his imagination or if he was making a drama out of nothing.

”Not if you won’t tell me what’s going on.” Saoirse growled, but she was quieter now. ”Does that have anything to do with Armie?”

He sighed without meaning to upon hearing his name and Saoirse groaned.

”Did you fuck up?”

”What – no! Why do you assume it was me?”

”Because you kind of have the tendency to destroy a good thing before it even begins because you have the weird impression that you’re unworthy of love or anything good in this life.” Ansel commented, out of the blue, while munching happily on a cupcake. Timmy rolled his eyes at his friend’s words.

”I do not.”

”Yes, you kind of do.” Saoirse strengthened his words, patting Timmy on the shoulder with sympathy. ”It’s about him, so tell us.”

”It’s nothing. I’m probably way over in my head.”

”Let us decide.” Ansel said, putting away his cupcake, ready to listen to Timmy’s confession. He hated it when the both of them ganged up on him, it made him feel small, even though that wasn’t their intention. He knew that he was too withdrawn, never talking to his friends about what was bothering him unless they pushed, and pushed, and pushed – a thing that rarely happened. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to talk to them, but he felt like his problems were insignificant and that he could deal with them on his own. He wasn’t going to put unnecessary baggage over his friends.

”Look, it’s nothing.” He began ”I just saw him being super chummy with the head cheerleader and I freaked out a little because I realize that’s he’s him and I’m me and there’s no way in hell a person like me is going to end up with someone like him. It’s like hitting the jackpot of the relationship, and I’m not that lucky. And yeah, okay, before you say it, yes, I did get a little bit jealous, because I don’t know. I like him. So very much. And I wouldn’t want to lose him to some stupid head cheerleader.” He finished angrily, picking up a napkin and shredding it to pieces. It felt good to let everything out, and also bad. He didn’t mean to call the head cheerleader stupid, it was just an access of fury that passed.

”Elizabeth Chambers.” Ansel said. ”That’s the name of the girl.”

”That helps a great deal, Ansel, thanks.” Timmy muttered ironically.

”I just said because it’s easier to say Elizabeth than head cheerleader, but look, you’re an idiot, and you worry for nothing. Everybody can see how that guy looks at you. It’s like you put up the fucking moon, alright? He’s making me sick with how smitten he is, honestly, so I don’t think you have anything to worry about.”

”I’m impressed. That’s the longest I’ve ever heard you speak.” Saoirse commented, making Timmy giggle.

”Oh, fuck you.” Ansel replied, but he was grinning. They had the weirdest relationship ever, despite their banter and their epic fights, Timmy knew that they would die for each other in a heartbeat.

”But yes, what Ansel said. And it’s alright to feel jealous, I mean… you’re kind of going somewhere with this, right? You told us that you cuddled and that you have cute nicknames for each other now and that you’ll keep seeing each other after the project is over. So you’re not exaggerating, but next time, talk to us instead of sulking like a goddamn idiot and making yourself hurt just because you’re unable to express your feelings.”

Timmy laughed and nodded his head. He had the best friends in the entire world and no one could tell him different.

\

He decided to also take the matter in his own hands so after classes were over he stood around, waiting in the parking lot of the high school for Armie. He wanted to talk to him, after seeing him with the head cheerleader – Elizabeth, he remembered – he did everything in his power to avoid seeing the boy and avoid answering to his messages. Armie complained of not seeing him at all and at some point he even wondered if something happened to Timmy, if he was sick so that’s why he didn’t go to school.

Timmy felt bad about that, but he wasn’t going to tell Armie about how stupid he was the whole day. Instead he had a plan to make up to him. He looked at the clock noticing that it was ten minutes past two and began to wonder if he didn’t actually miss the older boy. He was debating weather he should call or not when strong arms wrapped around his middle, pulling him back into a warm, solid chest.

”I missed you today.” Armie’s deep voice whispered in his ear as the older boy nuzzled his face in the crook of his neck. Timmy had to fight a little so he could move, and when Armie loosened his grip, the cute boy turned around and threw his arms around the older boy’s neck, hugging him with all his might.

”You too.” Timmy mumbled, pulling back only slightly.

”I thought you weren’t in school.” Armie said, keeping his hands on his hips and pulling him even closer than it was humanly possible. ”Didn’t you see my texts?”

”Sorry, I’ve been very busy with these stupid classes. Didn’t even have time to be on the phone.” He lied easily, feeling only a little bad when he saw the way Armie’s face lightened up. He was horrible, but he really didn’t want to sound like an idiot in front of his crush.

”Oh. Well are you free now? Were you waiting for me because you wanted to work on the project or something?”

”No, I wanted to ask if you wanted to go somewhere with me.”

”Sure, where?”

Timmy smiled, combing his fingers through Armie’s hair, feeling his heart burst with love when the older boy leaned against his hand.

”To my special place, this time. You’ll like it, I promise.”

The smile on Armie’s face was enough of an answer.

”Lead the way, angel.”


	5. five.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love writing for this story and it seems that the ideas keep flowing. Shout out to Call me by your name in this chapter. :P   
> Hope that everyone is alright, that you're holding yourself together and that you're healthy!!!   
> Please let me know what you think in the comments, I love reading your opinions about the story.   
> Sorry for the mistakes. :( 
> 
> All the looooove :)

”What is this place?” Armie asked, ducking just in time to not hit a low branch that was hanging from a tree.

”This is my special place.” Timmy murmured, as to not disturb the silence that hung in the air. Armie expected Timmy to take him somewhere in the city, maybe to a diner, or even a café. However, Timmy asked him to drive twenty minutes away from the high school, guiding him through almost deserted neighbourhoods and narrow streets until they got to a dead end, near the forest. _We have to walk there,_ Timmy told him, unbuckling his seat belt and sliding out of the car. Armie followed closely, keeping an eye out. What if they came across some wild animals, or one of them got hurt in the process of walking. They’d be stranded out there, he checked his phone for service and there was none, so it was obvious for him to worry.

It was like a scene ripped from a horror movie and he seriously liked that Timmy trusted him so much to take him there. Armie wouldn’t have trusted someone his size, God knows what kind of weird people were in this world. He could never hurt Timmy, of course, and he was a hundred percent sure that Timmy could never hurt him, but it was still creepy.

They came across an opening, close to the middle of the forest. A field full of flowers, grass and trees. The trees were huge, diving towards the sky and forming a crown over the little spring that was dripping quietly in a corner. He loved the way the sun was falling upon the entire opening, casting everything in warmth and light. He also loved how quiet it was, the singing of birds the only sound louder than the dripping of the water. Armie breathed in heavily, inhaling the fresh air with hunger.

”This is my spot.” Timmy said, walking away from him. ”It’s all mine. I come here to read, can’t tell you the number of books I’ve read here.”

”It’s beautiful. How did you find this place?” he asked, following Timmy into the light. It was warmer than any other day of October and he wanted to soak up all the sunshine before the autumn and the winter fully sat in. He looked at the cute boy, noticing how his eyes seemed almost out of this word in that light, his long curls jumping with every tiny breath of wind. Timmy shrugged his shoulders at his question.

”I don’t know, just stumbled upon it and I kept coming back after that time. It’s peaceful and from what I’ve seen no one really knows about it, so as I said, it’s all mine. I even come here during the winter, because I like to see the frozen spring and the driven snow. Oh, and on those days, when the sun is shining, making the snow appear so white and pure that you can’t even look at it without your eyes hurting, those are the best days.”

Armie sighed, and without even trying to stop himself, he stretched one arm towards the cute boy, pulling him forcefully in a hug. Timmy giggled, throwing his arms around his neck and rising on his tip toes. He loved the way the boy hugged, with his whole being, molding his frame against his like they were made for that. Made for hugging and cuddling – Timmy was a perfect fit in his arms. The top of his head reached below Armie’s chin and the difference in height was melting his insides. He liked it when his partners were shorter than him, it made him feel like he was a human shield, a protector.

”I like the way you say things.” Armie muttered, brushing his lips on Timmy’s forehead.

”You’re the only person I’ve ever brought here.” The cute boy mumbled, hiding his face in Armie’s chest. ”Now it can be our special place. Just like the diner.”

If Armie wasn’t already smitten with the boy, he was sure that he could have been after hearing him say that. He kissed the top of his head again, before detangling himself from the boy and pulling him along to one patch of grass that was heavily warmed by the sun. He sat down first, leaning with his whole body against the ground and gesturing for the boy to join him. Timmy did and after only a moment of hesitation he dropped on top of Armie, covering all of his body with his frame and nuzzling against the crook of his neck.

”And I like cuddling with you.” Timmy whispered, peaking shyly at him.

”Good, because I like cuddling with you. It’s a win-win situation.” Armie winked, making him giggle. ”That laugh of yours, it’s adorable. I could listen to it forever.”

”Aw, man.” The cute boy laughed, his cheeks turning a dark shade of red and he hid his face in embarrassment. ”Stop saying cute things like that or I might blush to death.”

Armie laughed back, rolling them over until Timmy was on his back, on the ground and he was hovering over him, shadowing the cute boy from the glare of the sun.

”I can’t help myself, you’re positively adorable.” He nosed along Timmy’s jawline, inhaling his scent. He smelled good, an earth-y combination and apple shampoo and something sweet and entirely addictive that was all Timmy. He inhaled deeply and the boy let out a soft sigh in response.

”I didn’t bring you here so we could fool around in the grass.” Timmy giggled, but he didn’t pull back, one of his hands went around Armie’s head, tangling his fingers with soft, blonde hair.

”Why not?” the older boy whined mockingly, pressing his lips against the cute boy’s pulse point, the sweetest spot on his neck where he could feel the way the beat of his heart picked up. ”You’re the best person to fool around in the grass with.”

”Ah.” Timmy sighed, closing his eyes for a second. ”You might be disappointed.” He opened his eyes all of the sudden, awkward and withdrawn, looking somewhere behind Armie when he spoke again. ”I’ve never… fooled around with anyone. Not here, not on the grass or anywhere else.”

”Hey.” Armie said, cupping his face and forcing him to look him in the eyes. ”I hope you’re not feeling ashamed by that. Because you have no reason to. If only, I should be embarrassed for making you uncomfortable, or for coming onto you too strong. That wasn’t my intention and I know you didn’t bring me here so we could make out or something. We can just talk, or sit in silence, I don’t care as long as you’re next to me.”

He started to talk and then he couldn’t stop and everything he said to Timmy was absolutely true. He felt surprised when Timmy admitted to not having his first kiss considering he was the most beautiful being on the planet and people had to be lining up at his door just to look at him, let alone be allowed to touch, but that didn’t mean that he owed Armie something. On the contraire, the older boy was ready to stop whatever that was and maybe pull him back in his arms (if Timmy even wanted that anymore) and just sit there until it was time to leave. Sure, kissing Timmy was every wet dream of his coming to life, but he wasn’t going to force the boy’s hand into doing something he wasn’t comfortable with. He wasn’t like that, plus he cared too much for the boy to even dream of forcing him into something he wasn’t ready for. Maybe he wanted his first kiss to be with someone else entirely, someone special to him. Maybe he wanted his first kiss to be with Armie, _but not right now._ He was content with every decision the boy might have picked as long as it meant that he got to keep him around.

”The thing is…” Timmy finally spoke, tongue darting out to wet his lips. ”I never wanted to do that this much before. I was just giving you a heads up, know that I completely suck at that.”

Armie chuckled shaking his head. Was this kid even real?

”Practice makes everything perfect, angel. But again we don’t have to do that right now, or ever if you don’t want to. We can cuddle forever and I’ll still be the happiest person on the planet…”

”Armie…” Timmy muttered with a click of his tongue. ”Shut up and kiss me already.”

The words died in his mouth and he swallowed hard, looking at the cute boy’s face for any sign of awkwardness or embarrassment. He couldn’t find any, he’d know, Timmy was the kind of person that wore every emotion on his face. Instead the boy’s eyes were open and earnest, patiently waiting his next move, and his face was partially illuminated by the glare of the sun. He never looked more like an angel than he did in that single moment, pale skin almost shining in the sun, eyes bright and his pupils were dilated even in the light – a clear sign that he wanted that kiss just as much as Armie did. His curly hair was splattered across the pale grass, a beautiful contrast of colors that made his other features pop. Timmy really was the most beautiful boy he’s ever seen in his life and he couldn’t believe how lucky he was for Timmy to pick him in return.

He leaned in slowly, giving the boy time to change his mind if he wanted to, but his eyes fluttered close and his mouth opened in a silent gasp right before Armie’s lips touched his. They were as soft as they looked, making the older boy loose his mind for a second. He really did that – he was kissing Timmy. Somehow Armie expected their first kiss to go just like the ones in movies, sparks flying behind his close eyelids, drums and a whole fucking fanfare singing in his ears. He was expecting the sky to open and God Himself bless them with his power.

But it wasn’t like that.

The whole world got quiet. He couldn’t hear the birds chirping anymore, or the dripping water, or the sound of his own blood rushing through his veins. He couldn’t hear Timmy’s heavy breathing or feel anything besides the way his lips felt under his. Was that how it was supposed to be with your soulmate? The whole world getting quieter and quieter and this amazing content feeling that was washing over him with force? If yes, he never wanted to escape that feeling.

He pulled back slowly, opening his eyes to look at the dumbfounded expression on the cute boy’s face.

”Good?” he asked, pulling back for good, sitting upright next to the boy. He felt as heavy as a snowflake, floating in the distance.

Timmy’s answer wasn’t verbal, instead the boy sat up abruptly, swinging his legs around Armie’s waist, his ass on his lap before pulling him in on another kiss. This one was more fierce, more passionate, sucking his soul from his body and he couldn’t care less. He had a lapful of a gorgeous boy, kissing him with all his might – yes, Timmy kissed the way he hugged, with his whole being and it was a wonderful experience – and it was the best way to go. If he were to die in that exact moment, he’d die a happy man, that’s for sure.

”You’re amazing.” Armie groaned when they broke the kiss, pressing his lips softly along the column of the boy’s neck. ”So fucking gorgeous.” He added when he pulled back to look at Timmy. He looked devastated, thoroughly kissed, eyes sparkling with happiness, cheeks flushed and lips swollen and red.

”Was that okay?” the cute boy asked shyly and Armie couldn’t believe his ears. He had to be fucking with him somehow.

”Okay? Here I thought you were trying to kill me.” He answered before his lips latched on the boy’s neck again, sucking gently this time and soothing the pain with a wet drag of his tongue. Timmy groaned, bucking his hips once at the sensation, making the older boy catch him by the hips to still him. He wasn’t going to allow him to do that, even if he did it without thinking, just a natural answer to Armie’s ministrations. The older boy really didn’t want to die.

”Mhm, not yet. I still haven’t inherited your fortune.” The cute boy replied, just a little bit breathless. His fingers were in Armie’s hair again, guiding his head to the other side of his neck.

”You’d make such a hot widower.”

”You’re such an idiot.” Timmy laughed, dragging his mouth towards his. ”I could never kill you.” He said, peppering his face with soft kisses, his eyes, his forehead, fun, little kisses on his nose.

”Keep that up and I’m going to die before I turn nineteen.”

”So you want me to stop?” Timmy asked, intrigued, pressing his lips in a thin line to stop himself from kissing Armie again.

”God no, I’d rather die than you stopping.” 

”Good.” The cute boy replied, before lunching at Armie with all his force, throwing him on the ground and resuming their kissing.

\

They returned to the city later, when the sun was beginning to set and Timmy’s stomach started to growl. Most of the time was spent kissing, innocent little kisses that set his being on fire. That became his favourite thing to do, kiss Timmy. Better yet, everything that involved Timmy was his favorite thing to do. The drive to the cute boy’s house was spent in silence – with their hands latched together – but it was the comfortable kind of silence. Before either of them knew it, Armie’s car was parked in front of the boy’s house.

Neither made any move to let go.

”I liked it today.” Timmy muttered shyly, unbuckling his seat belt with one hand and moving to rest his head on Armie’s shoulder.

”Me too.” the older boy whispered. ”Hey…”

”Hmm?” the cute boy hummed, distracted, rising their intertwined hands to place a kiss on the back of Armie’s hand.

”Would you like to go out with me?”

Timmy looked at him, a grin curving his lips.

”Armie Hammer… are you asking me on a date?”

”I’m asking you on a date.” He confirmed with a smile of his own.

”And where would you take me? To a movie so you could pull that _yawn-arm-behind-your-back_ move? And then to dinner so you can act like the proper gentleman, hm?” Timmy teased, climbing on top of him, cramped between the steering wheel and Armie’s chest. The older boy chuckled, kissing him swiftly before answering:

”Definitely not a movie. I want to talk to you. Get to know you better. And dinner sounds so boring, we both know that I can pretend to be the proper gentleman, but not around your skinny ass.”

Timmy gasped, bursting into a belly shaking laughed. Everything about him was genuine, so pure. He hugged with his whole being. He kissed with his whole being. He laughed with his whole being. It made everything inside Armie burn with desire. The desire of having him close and keeping him there forever. He was pretty sure that no feeling in the world compared with being loved by Timmy.

”You’re such an ass!” the cute boy exclaimed, finally managing to keep his laughter under control.

”Your ass, though.” He kissed him again, resting his forehead against his and simply breathing him in.

”I like the sound of that.” Timmy admitted. ”And I’ll go on a date with you, of course.”

”Good, you had me worried there for a second.”

The cute boy rolled his eyes, placing a final kiss on Armie’s lips before scrambling back on his seat, taking his back pack from the backseat and moving to open the car’s door.

”I’ll see you tomorrow, yeah?”

”And I’ll talk to you later.” Armie promised. ”Stop looking so irresistible and go before I throw you in the backseat and make out with you in front of your house.”

Timmy giggled, getting out of the car, entering again just to kiss him one more time and sprinting into the house before Armie could compose himself.

That kid was going to be the absolute death of him, he was sure.


	6. six.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiii!!! Hope that everyone is happy and healthy and that you're holding up okay. :)  
> Thank you so much for your support, it means the world to me to read your kind words. Hopefully you'll like this chapter as well and please let me know in the comment section.  
> We're slowly but surely approaching the angsty part of the story. :D 
> 
> P.S.: I don't intend to make Elizabeth the super bad guy, she's just going to be a little insufferable, but I hope you'll love her in the end. 
> 
> All the loooooove

His mother was on him as soon as the door closed behind him. He let his backpack drop to the floor and toed off his shoes, rising his eyes just in time to see his father’s head peak from the kitchen.

”What are you guys doing here?” Timmy asked, confused. He checked his phone for the time. Already past five in the afternoon. He spent three hours with Armie in his special place. Three hours that felt like three minutes. That’s why he was so confused about his parents being home early, they usually came around five.

”We live here.” His father deadpanned and usually he’d roll his eyes at his wannabe sarcastic tone that was awful due to the thick French accent he was still sporting. This time he laughed, passing his mother a placing a kiss on her cheek before going to the kitchen’s sink to wash his hands.

”Who was he?” his mother blurted out, excited, without meaning to and Timmy frowned for a second before the blood started to fill his face. Oh God, he made out with Armie in front of his house while his parents were inside. He did that specifically because he believed his parents weren’t home yet, otherwise he’d have scrambled out of the car before the other boy could even think of kissing him. He tried to play it cool, so he opened the fridge, took out the carton of orange juice and poured himself a glass.

”Who?” the cute boy asked innocently, sipping his juice slowly. Father smiled, shaking his head, knowing exactly what he was trying to do. _That works with me_ he was trying to say, because they were so much alike, both getting awfully uncomfortable fast, fighting to finish this type of discussions as soon as possible. It wasn’t going to work on his mother, though. She was too bull-headed, optimistic and full of life and she thought that every person that talked to Timmy had a crush on him. It took him ages to make her understand that there wasn’t going to be anything more than friendship between him and Saoirse. Firstly because he wasn’t her type. Secondly because he was very fucking gay.

”That boy that drove you here.” His mother answered impatiently, tapping her foot on the floor. ”Is he your boyfriend?”

”No.” Timmy replied, because really, no. They barely knew each other, yet they did make out, something he never thought about doing with a person he barely knew. But they couldn’t yet put a label on it, and Timmy wasn’t exactly a guy for labels. He knew that he liked Armie, so very much, and he’s had a crush on the boy since forever. And, he was fairly certain that Armie liked him as much as Timmy liked him, but they still didn’t talk about that. A few kisses and some cuddles didn’t mean that they were a couple, even if Timmy wished for that with all of his power. He wanted to see how their date played out first, after they got to know each other better, then they could talk about this kind of thing.

”Really?” mother asked him with quirked eyebrows. ”So why were you sticking you tongue down your not-boyfriend’s throat?”

He spluttered, choking on the mouthful of orange juice and trying to cover up his embarrassment with a coughing fit. Father started to laugh, moving to pat him on the back to try and soothe his lungs.

”Mom!” Timmy exclaimed after regaining some control.

” Timothée Hal Chalamet! Don’t ever lie to your mother again.” She scolded him.

”I’m not lying _. Papa, aide-moi ici._ He’s a friend from school.”

”Oh please, you kiss all of your friends like that?” mother rolled her eyes, pouring coffee in a cup and settling at the table. ”Tell. Me.”

”He’s Timmy’s crush.” A tiny voice quipped and Timmy had enough time to brace himself for how Pauline threw her tiny body in his arms. He picked her up, spinning her around and placing soft kisses all over her face, making her giggle delighted. Pauline kept her arms around his neck, squeezing him like her life depended on it.

”Hi, poupée.”

”Hi.” She replied softly, turning her gaze to where their parents sat smiling. They loved watching the two of them interact, especially since Timmy had a hard time accepting the fact that he had a sister. They were way past that, of course, but the cute boy assumed they just loved seeing there together. Seeing how careful and attentive the older brother was around the little girl. Nobody could have any doubt about how much the two siblings loved one another. ”Timmy has a crush. He’s name is Armie and he’s a giant.” Pauline roared, making her parents and her brother laugh.

”Really? And how do you know?” mother asked, a sly smile brightening her features. Timmy internally groaned. Pauline was going to tell them about Armie stopping by to do the project, because Timmy never asked her that it was supposed to be a secret. Not like his parents had anything to say about that. They would probably be thrilled for he managed to make another friend, but they would still tease him to no end.

”He came over on Sunday.” Pauline replied excitedly. ”They worked on a project. His French is terrible and the three of us cuddled in the living room.”

”Too many details.” Timmy groaned, putting Pauline down, exiting the kitchen to get his back pack and run to his room.

”You’re sneaking in your boyfriend when your parents are not at home?” his mother howled with laughter, following him to the stairs.

”Not my boyfriend!” he yelled back, but he was smiling. Mother was weird, but he loved her so much.

”Stop denying it, Timmy.”

”I’m serious, he’s not my boyfriend. But we are going on a date sometimes soon.”

”Atta boy, my son is going on a date. Now remember, darling, don’t be silly, wrap your willy.”

He face palmed, taking the stairs two at the time to get to his room as soon as possible.

Definitely a weird woman.

But the best out there.

\

Armie did call him that night, after dinner, and they spent the whole time chatting until Timmy fell asleep with his phone next to him. Armie wanted to know if Friday was a good time for their date and Timmy agreed, it was going to be weekend after all, so no point in waiting. When he asked what were they going to do, Armie chuckled: _Wouldn’t you like to know, huh?_ and said it was a surprise, spurring Timmy further until he had to give up. The older boy was a rock and no matter how much Timmy bargained and pleaded he couldn’t get anything from him. Armie only told him that it wasn’t going to be anything fancy so wear comfortable clothes and he changed the topic soon after that.

In the course of the week Armie picked him up in the morning and dropped him off after school and even if they weren’t holding hands or kissing in public or anything like that, whispers started to follow Timmy through the hallways and in the classes, making even some of his teacher look at him a bit odd. That was going to be only for a couple of days, two weeks at most, it was something so new and fresh and people weren’t used to seeing Armie with someone younger than him, let alone a nobody like Timmy. The whispers were uncomfortable and the way some people giggled or looked at him made the boy feel self-conscious, until he saw the way Armie’s face lit up every time he was around. The older boy even stopped hanging with his friends at lunch, moving to Timmy, Saoirse and Ansel’s table and after only one day Nick decided to follow his best friend.

Fortunately his two friends got along just fine with Armie, even though he was nervous about their first real encounter – he didn’t want to stop talking to Armie just because he didn’t like his friends or if his friends didn’t like the boy. Ansel and Saoirse’s friendship meant the world to him, and he loved them so very much, he wasn’t going to drop them just because some popular guy that could probably not even remember his name in a few years, said so. But Armie was pleasant, it was easy to see why everyone liked him so much – he laughed with his whole body, he gestured wildly like he was saying a huge story even if it was something mundane, and he still looked at Timmy with the same fire in his eyes. A fire that Timmy was, pretty sure, going to consume him and make him burn forever.

And Nick was charming, sweet and funny, and he took to Saoirse and Ansel like a duck to water. The three of them even got invited to Nick’s Halloween party which was going to be right on the Saturday of the Halloween. Neither of them ever attended a party and Nick assured them that it was going to be a great, epic experience. Apparently he’d thrown a party every year for Halloween, his parents were rich and most of the time out of city and they let him do everything he wanted in their absence.

_We’re getting popular because of them_ , Saoirse whispered to him on Friday, at lunch, when the three other boys were engaged in a heated discussion over what superhero was better. Timmy barely shrugged his shoulders, it was weird and not a great experience for him, but Saoirse liked meeting new people and making new friends so the extra attention was welcomed.

He realized how much he hated the so called popularity when, right before his last class of the day, when he was trying to pull a notebook out of the piles of books, papers and other things from his locker, a voice cleared his throat from behind him, making him jump up in surprise. Timmy slammed the door shut, turning to look at the army of cheerleaders that were circling him with no means to escape, in front of them no one other than Elizabeth Chambers. All of the girls were wearing that stupid uniform and seriously, wasn’t that like in some kind of stupid, teen movie? their hairs coifed to perfection and lips the same shade of bright pink.

”Um…” Timmy muttered, frowning.

”Hi. You’re Timmy, right?” Elizabeth said.

”Yes, I am. Excuse me, I’m late for class.”

”No, you’re not. You still have five minutes. I’m Elizabeth. Call me Liz.”

”Alright… Liz… Can I help you with anything?”

”Just a curiosity, really.”

He sighed, not being able to stop himself.

”Does this has anything to do with Armie?”

”Oh.” Liz laughed, making enough room for him to walk towards his next class. ”How did you know?”

”You’ve never talked to me before, so I was just assuming.”

”Yes, anyway, is there something going on between the two of you?”

”What do you mean by something?”

”Like, are you a couple?”

”I don’t think we are.”

”But you’ve fucked.”

Her statement threw him off a bit, but he tried not to show.

”No. We’re going on a date later today.”

”Oh, where?”

”I don’t know. He said it’s a surprise.”

”Hm. That doesn’t sound like Armie.”

”No?”

”He’s the love them and leave them type of guy. Unless he desperately wants to sleep with you and you don’t. You know, haha, people usually don’t need a lot of persuasion when it comes to him.”

”I bet.” Timmy muttered dryly, feeling his throat close up. For whatever reason her presence annoyed him. And the way she talked about Armie made him incredibly angry. He stopped in front of the class door, and Elizabeth looked him up and down with an air of disdain, clearly she wasn’t impressed by what she was seeing. A fake smile blossomed on her lips and she gestured for her mini squad to go ahead.

”You’re pretty tiny. Sort of like a bird, fragile. Careful, he’s strong, he could very easily break you.”

With one last smirk thrown over her shoulder she finished:

”I should know.”

\

Obviously his mood was completely off, even hours later, when Armie came to pick him up for their date and his mother kissed him goodbye with a devilish grin. The older boy picked him up in a truck, much bigger and very well kept compared to his other car. Armie’s excitement was palpable and he tried not to sour his mood with his attitude. It was easy to forget about everything Elizabeth told him when his date looked at him like that, driving to the outskirts of the city, parking the truck right next to a pumpkin field.

”Don’t tell me that you’re idea is for us to steal pumpkins for Nick’s party.” Timmy laughed when Armie opened the door for him and helped him down.

”No, but damn, that’s a good idea. We can do that next time.”

”Oh, next time. You think you’re getting another date?” Timmy grinned. Armie hopped easily in the back of the truck, extending a hand to help the cute boy up as well.

”I know I’m getting another date.” He winked, turning around and unpacking blankets and pillows from various bags.

”I do like cocky men.” Timmy breathed out and next thing he knew, he was being taken into strong arms and kissed thoroughly. He lost himself into the kiss, moaning when Armie opened his mouth eagerly, slipping his tongue between Timmy’s lips. That immense fire was still there, burning with ferocity and when they came up for air, the cute boy found himself clinging desperately to Armie.

”I’ve been meaning to do that all day.”

”Just remember I don’t put out on the first date.” Timmy breathed, making the other boy chuckle.

”Let’s sit.”

It was a beautiful evening, and far away from the craziness in the city, the sky was bright with twinkling stars and the air was crisp and fresh, perfect for almost the end of October. He sat between Armie’s legs, back against his warm chest both covered with a cozy blanket that provided perfect heat.

”This is perfect.” Timmy muttered, dropping his head on Armie’s shoulder to kiss his cheek. ”Thank you.”

”Yeah?” the boy muttered shyly, hiding his eyes behind his lashes. ”I thought you’d like it more than some typical date.”

”I love it, the stars, the food, tea… there’s you.” Timmy giggled at Armie’s scoff, burying further in the boy’s arms, pulling him in on a deep kiss.

Right there, with Armie’s lips against his and his arms around Timmy, with the nature being their only witness and Elizabeth long forgotten, Timmy realized that there was no place he’d rather be.


	7. seven.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! Thank you so much for your comments!! Can't wait for you to read this chapter, is fluffy as always, I promise. :)  
> Hope that everyone is happy and healthy!!!
> 
> All the loooove

They got attached to the hip, and it was the weirdest most wonderful feeling in the world. He’s had his fair share of girlfriends and boyfriends until the age of eighteen, but he was the kind of person that valued his own intimacy and personal time much more than anything else in the world. He realized that maybe, he had that problem, because he didn’t like the other person he was in a relationship with as much as he likes Timmy, that’s why the force of his feelings scared him sometimes. Until Nick’s Halloween party they spent ever single free time in each other’s company – either at Mama’s diner, Timmy’s special place in the forest when it was warm enough to be outside for more than twenty minutes, or quick dates at one café or another. Nick put his foot down after a week and a half, complaining to Saoirse and Ansel that Timmy was stealing his best friend, making the other two complain in return. Timmy made that adorable face of his, making Saoirse scoff because _that face makes me feel bad for making you feel bad, you asshole._ Armie didn’t take them seriously, he could actually see the fondness in their eyes and the happiness on their faces that only a genuine friend could have for another.

They made a deal of some sort, Armie was going to help Nick with his preparations for the Halloween party and Timmy, Ansel and Saoirse will have a horror movie marathon on the 30th and take Pauline trick or treating on the 31st before going to Nick’s place.

So it was understandably that Armie missed him, especially since all of their free time was spent together, learning new things about each other every day and discovering things that made them laugh and smile and giggle. With Armie it was easy, everything about Timmy made him smile like a fool.

”What are you dressing as tomorrow?” Nick asked, letting out a pained groan when he had to stick his hand in a pumpkin to pull out it’s content. They were currently in Nick’s backyard, carving Jack-o’-lanterns to put around the yard as decorations, they already dressed the trees in front of the house in toilet paper, having fun while doing that. Carving pumpkins was also fun, if only Nick could stop gagging every damn time he had to stick his hand around in one.

”Stop groaning like a baby.” Armie laughed.

”I can’t help it, dude, it’s gross. It’s wet and squishy and plain eww.”

Armie rolled his eyes, cutting a perfect round in his pumpkin. He wanted that one to be a replica of Munch’s _The Scream._ They chose a different theme every year for pumpkins and this year the theme was famous painters. Nick was already finished with replicating _Starry Night_ and it turned out better than any of them expected, Nick was one hell of an artist, and he was already accepted in NYU’s Arts program.

”Captain America.”

”Huh?” his best friend asked confused. ”Oh, right. The costume. Wait, _First Avenger_ Captain America?”

”More like _Winter Soldier_ Captain America.”

”Ohhh, the stealth suit. Nice, it’s going to make your eyes pop, and your ass will be the main attraction of the party. We should stop decorating right now, no one’s going to notice our efforts.”

Armie rolled his eyes again, blushing to the roots of his light hair. Nick’s half hearted teasing never got such reaction out of them and he felt weird just blushing at his best friend’s compliment. He was trying to avoid looking at him, or he’ll never hear the end of it. Sadly, Nick was a very attentive person, nothing got past him and in a second his booming laugh could be heard from miles away.

”I can see that blush creeping on your neck, Hammer.”

”Shut your trap.” Armie mumbled.

”Look at you, getting all flustered and bothered by my comment. You having a crush on me, Hammer?”

At that Armie grinned, tossing a handful of pumpkin seed in Nick’s direction, making the other boy jump, yelp and drop his knife to the floor.

”Not cool, brother, not cool.”

”You wish I’d have a crush on you, idiot.”

”How did you know?” Nick fake-gasp before throwing himself on one of the chairs, abandoning his work. He patted the chair next to him and Armie shrugged. A pause would be good, they still had a lot of decorating to do inside the house. ”Did ya tell the kid you love him already?”

”We’ve been going out for a couple of weeks, Nick, it doesn’t work like that.” Armie said shyly, looking everywhere but at his friend. For whatever reason the conversation made him uncomfortable.

”But you do love him.” Armie frowned, opening his mouth to reply before Nick shook his head. ”Don’t answer that, it’s obvious.”

”How?”

”Well, it might not be obvious to him, but it’s fucking obvious to me. I’ve known you my entire life and I’ve seen you with every single person you’ve dated and nothing compares to him.” Nick wet his lips and continued without letting Armie say a word. ”Like, I don’t know man, you’re so different, but like, still you. I mean you smile with no reason which is kind of terrifying if you ask me, but I caught that dreamy look on your face too many times to count. It’s like he brought out the best version of yourself. And don’t even try to deny that you love him, it’s written all over your face, honestly you couldn’t have picked a better person to fall in love with. He’s great – fun, cute, gentle and smart. What a fucking catch, Hammer, honestly.” He took a deep breath, finishing his improvised speech quickly: ”I’m glad that my best friend finally found love. Now let’s finish this up before we start inside.”

Armie knew that Nick gave him his blessing and he couldn’t be happier for having such a beautiful human being as his best friend.

\

They didn’t have much time to talk, Timmy was busy with his friends, binge watching old horror movies and trying to pull off a costume since he forgot all about Halloween and he didn’t want to show up as a simple ghost. Armie and Nick, on the other hand, finished decorating the house around midnight, wolfed down a massive pizza between themselves while watching serial killers documentaries on Netflix.

On the 31st of October both parties woke up around noon, with Armie trying to find the will to get up from the bed and go home, maybe have lunch with his family and get ready for the party, and Timmy hurrying to take Pauline on time for trick or treating. They texted back and forth and the older boy was surprised how much he missed the cute boy after not seeing him for more than 24 hours. Texting wasn’t sufficient, he wanted to hold the boy and kiss him and hear his voice, but he knew he had to wait until the party to do that. As much as he loved spending time with his best friend, a thing he greatly missed, he found himself mourning the absence of his loved one more.

He went back to Nick’s house a little after six. He didn’t take the car, knowing very well that Nick’s party was full of alcohol, he could always crash at Nick’s place. Thankfully there weren’t any people mingling around yet, and after leaving the front door wide open, the two friends went to the living room to play on the console until the guests arrived.

It took over an hour for the house to fill up with people, music blasting from the stereo while their colleagues fought to cram in as much alcohol as possible. He was watching the door anxiously, checking his phone every thirty seconds and wondering why it took Timmy so long to get there. Wasn’t he finished with Pauline, yet?

A tap on the shoulder distracted him from the inner turmoil, but when he turned around he saw Liz there instead of Timmy. He tried not to let his features fall, Liz was his friend. It wasn’t her fault that she wasn’t the cute boy. She was wearing a skin tight leather suit, a red wig and various plastic weapons attached to her body. He didn’t miss the way some of the boys looked at her figure.

”Look at that, we match.”

”Huh?” he asked dumbly. She was most definitely not dressed as Captain America.

”I’m Black Widow.”

”Ooh, you mean you’re an Avenger too. For a second there you got me wondering when did Captain America wore such a skin tight suit.” Armie laughed, waving his hand in recognition.

”Plus she likes to flirt with him. I like flirting with you too.” Liz winked, making the boy cringe internally.

He couldn’t understand why did she keep on pushing him like that, considering that he never looked at her in the way a guy was supposed to look at a girl. She was his friend, a very good friend he could say and just because of that he could never try and pursue a relationship with her. Armie cherished their friendship dearly and over the years, especially since they grew up, he explained to her countless of times that he didn’t want her like that. Always trying to be a gentleman, always trying to be nice when he said that to her. At one point he did blow up, snapping at her to stop already with the seduction techniques, saying that he was going to remove himself from her life if she kept that up. Every time he refused her, Armie could see the way her face fell the tiniest bit. He hated hurting her, but it’s not like the boy had any other choice.

”Uh sure, whatever you say, Liz.” he finally mumbled, smiling an uncomfortable grin.

”Where’s the little guy tonight?”

Hearing her mention Timmy made his whole mood lighten up, that’s why he missed the way Liz’s eyes flashed with jealousy, before she plastered on that too wide, fake smile of hers.

”He should be arriving any minute now.” Armie answered, smiling even bigger when Nick slung an arm around his shoulders, pulling him in a half hearted hug. His friend was wearing a doctor’s coat splashed with fake blood, fake cuts and bruises all over his face.

”Everybody complimented the decorations, dude.”

”They should be, it took forever to put everything up.”

Nick looked over his shoulder, lips parting in a huge smirk:

”Well, would you look at that, what an adorable kitten you got yourself, brother.”

Armie was confused, so he followed the direction in which his best friend was looking and soon enough, his eyes fell on Timmy making his way towards them. He felt his heart soar in his chest, and the party started to disappear, the only thing remaining being the cute boy and his adorable kitten ears. It was obvious that Timmy didn’t have a lot of inspiration and time for his costume. He was wearing black skinny jeans, boots and an over-sized, soft looking sweater. The kitten ears were sparkly pink, a flash of color in those beautiful dark curls and someone, probably Saoirse, painted a black nose and whiskers on his face.

He looked so adorable, Armie forgot to breathe for a second.

”Great decorations you guys!” Ansel, dressed as Freddy Kruger – minus the creepy face – exclaimed, fist bumping Nick with enthusiasm.

Armie detached himself from his best friend and in one swift movement he had the cute boy in his arms, where he belonged, cuddling him tightly to his chest. He leaned down, burying his face in those soft curls and breathing in the sweet smell that was all Timmy. The boy giggled, throwing his arms around Armie’s neck and dragging him down to peck him on the lips.

”Hi, angel.” The older boy breathed, so softly that he wasn’t sure Timmy heard.

”Hi, baby.” surprisingly the boy replied, deepening the kiss for a few moments, until their friends began to whistle and boo at them.

”Holy shit, you haven’t seen each other since yesterday, get your shit together.” Saoirse commented, rolling her eyes at the sappy couple.

”I’ve heard the big guy sigh so many times he conditioned me to associate that sound with Timmy.” Nick told her and Ansel.

”Dude, Timmy was close to punching an old lady in the face because she took too long to give out candy.” Ansel added, making Armie laugh.

”You did?”

”Did not.” The cute boy blushed, but despite their friends comments he was smiling, pleased.

Nick dragged Saoirse and Ansel around the house, offering them drinks and showing off the hard work they put on making the decorations, leaving the two boys to have as much intimacy as you could have in a house full of people. Armie took Timmy’s hand, dragging him through the sea of teenagers to a more deserted place, between the kitchen and the back porch. Most of the party people were mingling in the living room or the hallway, some of them even spilled outside, and Armie was grateful for the quietness, pressing the boy against the French doors of the patio and kissing him thoroughly. After a few moments Timmy pulled back laughing, putting his thumb against Armie

’s lips to stop him from kissing further.

”We’re missing the entire party.” He commented, giggling.

”Fuck the party, I want to make out with you.” Armie grinned, pulling him closer and pressing kissing along the column of his neck, nipping lightly at his jawline. Timmy clung to him, going soft, the older boy the only thing that kept him upright.

”I missed you.” The cute boy mumbled, sighing out in pleasure when he sunk bit the side of his neck.

”I missed you too, so much.” He replied, stopping his ministrations to take a good look at the boy. Generally he looked happy, eyes sparkling with enthusiasm – a few days ago, he confessed to Armie that it was the first party he and his friends ever attended, and they were excited. The kitten ears were askew on his head and the older boy straightened them back in place. ”You look so fucking adorable, my kitten-angel.”

Timmy blushed, letting out another giggle.

”Your kitten-angel, hm?”

Armie was about to reply when Timmy gasped, gripping his forearms strongly.

”I love this song. Let’s dance!”

”I don’t know how to dance.” Armie grumbled, but he let himself be dragged to the dance floor by the cute boy.

”I’ll teach you.”

\

It wasn’t that he didn’t know how to dance, Armie realized a while later, he always had the wrong partners. Moving with Timmy to the beat of the music felt natural. He didn’t feel like the most awkward person in the room – the tallest and the most awkward – he felt like any other party goer that enjoyed the pop songs Nick was blasting from the speakers. It took him very little time to let loose and actually start enjoying himself. Timmy was a phenomenal dancer, his body becoming one with the music and pulling Armie in, in the same way a siren would do to a sailor. Their bodies pressed close together with Timmy’s head on his shoulder, dragging him down in a sinful kiss from time to time, it became one of his favorites activities in the world – dancing with Timmy.

He tried not to stick like glue to the boy’s side the whole evening and at some point he left him with Saoirse and Ansel while he went around the house, striking up conversations with various people or stocking more drinks and candies in the kitchen. It was probably the hardest thing he could have done, his whole being yearning to go back to the cute boy, but he wanted him to have the full great party experience with his friends, not stay with Armie the entire night and make out.

At some point he played a few rounds of darts with Nick, laughing at their friend’s antics, but keeping a close eye to the cute boy. He looked like he was enjoying himself, laughing freely with Ansel and Saoirse. Armie was hit with the sudden thought that he really did love the cute boy, his heart and his soul and his entire being fully belonged to Timmy. He never felt anything like this before, and he was pretty sure that he won’t be having that feeling ever again in his life, even though he was only eighteen and who knows if things really worked out with Timmy in the end? But it was something about him, something that made him follow every breath the cute boy took. It was a scary emotion to feel – like he could never be apart from the cute boy in his life, but that’s why it was so special.

When Timmy turned his head and caught his eyes, smiling that soft smile of his that Armie selfishly thought was reserved only for him, he wanted to shout from the top of his lungs how much he loved the cute boy. Wanted to never let a day pass without telling him that.

”What got you looking so determined?” Nick asked him.

”I’m going to tell him.”

”Tell him what?”

”That I love him. I don’t even care if he doesn’t or if he won’t ever feel the same. I want him to know that I love him.”

Nick laughed, slapping him on the shoulder.

”That’s my boy.”

Nick’s words were his cue to leave. He abandoned the game of darts and made his way quickly between people, catching Timmy’s elbow just as the boy was about to leave.

”Going somewhere?”

”Oh.” The cute boy laughed, gesturing towards Saoirse. ”We were about to go find a toilet.”

”I’ll take you.”

He intertwined Timmy’s fingers with his, keeping him as close as possible before leading the small group to the bathroom upstairs. At this hour and with so many – most likely drunk – people at the party, the toilet reserved for the guests was most certainly filthy or occupied by someone that thought having sex in the bathroom of a party was the definition of cool.

”Down the hall.” Armie pointed to Saoirse before turning to Timmy. ”Can I talk to you for a second?”

_Very poor choice of words_ , he realized when the cute boy’s face fell in an instant, changing nervous glances with his friends. _You’re a fucking idiot, Hammer._ He stopped himself from face palming.

”I’ll wait for Saoirse.” Ansel chipped in, rubbing the back of his neck. ”See you downstairs.”

Armie nodded, dragging the cute boy towards Nick’s bedroom.

The noise of the party filtered in until he closed the door, then it was quiet. Only the sound of their feet dragging across the carpet and Timmy’s nervous gulping.

”Is this Nick’s bedroom?”

”Yeah, why?”

The cute boy chuckled.

”He looks like the type of guy that could have posters of naked women on his walls, instead it’s an impressive collection of comics.”

”Don’t let him fool you, that guy’s a geek to the core.” Armie replied, sitting on the bed and patting the spot next to him softly. Timmy sat down reluctantly, pulling at a loose thread on his sweater. He looked nervous and small and Armie wanted nothing more than to pull him in his arms and soothe his anxiety.

”Is there something wrong?”

”No, no! I’m sorry, I realized too late how that sounded in the hall. It’s nothing bad… I think.”

He took Timmy’s hand in his, kissing his wrist and each of his fingers, trying to shake off some of the nerves. The cute boy must have noticed his fidgeting, for he took his face between his palms.

”Hey, it’s alright. You know that you can tell me anything.”

”I know.” Armie whispered, leaning his face in Timmy’s hand. He closed his eyes for a second, basking in the feeling of having the cute boy this close. When he opened his eyes again it was like seeing Timmy for the first time: brows furrowed in concern, rosy lips parted slightly and his eyes dark with worry. He loved him so much he felt like he was going to burst. ”I love you.” Armie said softly, watching how shock and amazement colored the cute boy’s features. ”I couldn't let another day pass without telling you that, and I didn’t tell you that now because I expect to hear it back – not now, or ever if you don’t want to. But always remember that I love you with all of my heart, Timmy.”

Timmy gasped, shaking his head in disbelief.

”You foolish man.” He muttered, throwing his arms around Armie’s neck, making the both of them stumble backwards on the bed. ” _Mon cœur t'appartient à jamais._ ”

_My heart is yours forever._


End file.
